It's a new dawn for the Raptors. Regardless of whether or not you bought into the bounty on Sam Mitchell's head, the decision to fire the 3+ year coach of the Raptors has been made.
I for one am very conflicted about this. I had been calling for his head for years (in personal circles/not so much publicly) citing an uninspired offense as the reason. Yet, when the news finally came I reacted with great sadness. I had come to know Sam through the media as a very unique individual, one who was prone to egging on the local beat grunts while seemingly getting along famously with the players. A "players coach". A guy with a tremendous sense of style. His sideline mannerisms have been just about the most enjoyable thing to watch in relation to the Raps for the last few weeks ... hell, stretching into last season. Watching him in the media scrums was also a favourite past time of mine. Seemingly the man didn't take shit from anyone, a refreshing energy for a team that often looked like seasonal affective disorder had grabbed a hold of it's mind grapes. The long and short of this paragraph ... his character will be missed.
In retrospect perhaps he hasn't had all that much to work with. To paraphrase the man himself, not all the players he has lead have been a fully viable NBA resource. I couldn't agree more. I certainly won't deny that Sam ran some great plays in his Toronto tenure. On many occasions he squeezed blood from a line up of the aforementioned stones. In my mind this will not go unnoticed. Former coach of the year, 47 win season, bringing together unlikely teammates, there is much to applaud.
It's with a somewhat heavy heart that I say adios to S Mi.
I for one am very conflicted about this. I had been calling for his head for years (in personal circles/not so much publicly) citing an uninspired offense as the reason. Yet, when the news finally came I reacted with great sadness. I had come to know Sam through the media as a very unique individual, one who was prone to egging on the local beat grunts while seemingly getting along famously with the players. A "players coach". A guy with a tremendous sense of style. His sideline mannerisms have been just about the most enjoyable thing to watch in relation to the Raps for the last few weeks ... hell, stretching into last season. Watching him in the media scrums was also a favourite past time of mine. Seemingly the man didn't take shit from anyone, a refreshing energy for a team that often looked like seasonal affective disorder had grabbed a hold of it's mind grapes. The long and short of this paragraph ... his character will be missed.
In retrospect perhaps he hasn't had all that much to work with. To paraphrase the man himself, not all the players he has lead have been a fully viable NBA resource. I couldn't agree more. I certainly won't deny that Sam ran some great plays in his Toronto tenure. On many occasions he squeezed blood from a line up of the aforementioned stones. In my mind this will not go unnoticed. Former coach of the year, 47 win season, bringing together unlikely teammates, there is much to applaud.
It's with a somewhat heavy heart that I say adios to S Mi.
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